Reborn, Reincarnate, Recreate
by exocara
Summary: I lived a content life, and then I died. But that's not the end. Apparently, I was reincarnated into one Sawada Tsunayoshi. Whom I don't know anything about, since I don't watch anime. Hahaha... help me. / Not really a self-insert but you can take it as such. Tsuna's still going to be Tsuna, after all. Just with different motivations.
1. Chapter 1

**Chapter One**

* * *

**0 years old**

* * *

I died at twenty-one years old on a sunny Saturday morning.

I didn't recall much about my death, just that little tidbit. Couldn't even remember how I died and who was the idiot who killed me - because I obviously couldn't die that young without being killed.

Well, dying young kind of sucked, really, but I surprisingly didn't regret much. My parents had died a few years back and I already made peace with that fact a long time ago. My brother had a stable job and a beautiful, caring wife, so there weren't many worries on that part. I didn't have a lover either, much less a spouse or a child, so I wasn't leaving much behind. But speaking of children…

My only regret would be leaving behind the children in the daycare I working in. I could only hope that the news of my untimely demise would be broken gently to them. Many of them were attached to me, after all.

Well, I wasn't _glad_ to go, but I wasn't tragically and unconsollable sad either. Neither was I angry, really. The thing that pissed me off was the after-death situation. What happened post-mortem.

Basically, I walked towards the light only to be engulfed in terrifying darkness, where I couldn't move a muscle. Not even to bat an eyelash. I'll be perfectly frank with you; I was _terrified_.

When I saw the light again, I cried. Really. I couldn't see much, though, just blurred figures moving about. And then…

"Congratulations, Mr. and Mrs. Sawada! He's a healthy baby boy!"

Wait, _what_?

Long story short, I had been reincarnated. Obviously, someone up there messed up and I had to pay for it.

I did not die for this rubbish.

Needless to say, I was not a happy camper.

* * *

I soon found out that my new life was to be spent in Japan. Namimori, Japan, to be specific. Something about the place rung alarm bells in my head, but whatever it was just skittered around the edges of my conscious thought, eluding me, so I put it aside in favour of sleeping.

I had to thank the heavens above that I didn't need to learn to comprehend a new language. When I had been younger - well, in my past life, that is - my brother had dragged me with him to learn the Japanese language and culture. I probably was a bit rusty due to the lack of language usage, but it probably wouldn't be much of a problem. What was a problem was…

"This is our house, Tsunayoshi!-kun" my new mother said to me.

… why my name gave me a horrid foreboding feeling.

* * *

** One years old **

* * *

The first year was torture, basically. I hated being so reliant on other people, especially after living alone for so long. On the other hand, it was also quite nice to be taken care of again. Kind of. I don't know, my brain was a conflicting mess of adult irritation and childish dependence.

My mother was a little scatterbrained, though. Sometimes, she would forget to feed me. Usually, I rectified the situation with loud wailing. However, I tried to cut down on it when I saw that her eyes were red. She was crying too, but why?

* * *

**Two years old**

* * *

When I stopped sleeping for at least eighty percent of the day, I began to notice a very disturbing lack of my father. In my past life, I wasn't very close to my dad. I was hoping to rectify this situation in my new life, but it seemed that this couldn't be the case.

I just hoped that my new father, whoever he was, had a good explanation of the long absences. Not that it would excuse his actions. Now all I could do was try to make my mother's life easier. Being a single mother can never be easy.

* * *

**Three years old**

* * *

You're kidding, you're kidding, _you're kidding._

This can_not_ be happening. These things don't happen. You don't just… One doesn't just… You can't…

These things _don't_ happen.

I stared at the bright orange, _not burning hot_ flames in my hand in horror. In my past life, I never was much of an anime fan. In fact, I didn't really watch anime in general. But how could I forget this?

That one anime that my brother loves - _loved, my traitorous mind corrected, he's not here anymore_ - had something about colourful fire and people named after Tokugawa shogun (_Iemitsu, my father. Tsunayoshi, my own name_), and finally _Mafia_.

Somehow, sometime, I was going to become a Mafia boss.

I slowly fell to my knees. Mafia… they were the bad guys, weren't they? Drug deals, human trafficking… I remembered my brother mentioning that there were even child experimentation involved.

As someone who a lifetime taking care of children, I couldn't think of any reason why people could hurt them. Really, people who hurt children were horrid and I wouldn't want anything to do with them. The Mafia was cruel and ruthless and would definitely discard anyone who was useless.

… discard those who are useless…?

Wait, that could be the answer! If I acted like a totally useless person, they would just discard me for a better heir! As long as I acted as someone invisible, someone who could be overlooked, they would definitely leave me alone. It shouldn't be too bad. I used to be one of the most invisible students to ever exist in my school, after all. (_Once upon a life ago, the voice whispers, in a time long past and a future that would never exist. I tell it to shut up. It wouldn't do any good to think about these things now._)

Of course, I need to pick up basic self-defense here and there too. Just in case.

* * *

** Five years old**

* * *

I didn't know fighting could be so cathartic. I didn't have to think much, yet my brain went into overdrive at the same time.

_Duck, punch, roll, he's guarding his left it's weak __**hit it**__._

I never indulged in fighting in my past life. It was something new here, something that would not remind me of a time long past, a world that didn't exis- I quickly shut that thought off as I blocked a punch. However, my distracting thoughts cost be a precious second and that was enough for my opponent to gain an upper hand against me.

_Jump- shit! Can't block!_

My opponent kicked me in the legs and I fell, landing in a weird position. Goddammit I must've twisted my ankle. The rest of the day is ruined.

Looks like I'll be going home sooner than usual. Sigh.

* * *

I can't believe I forgot.

I stared up at the face of the seemingly nice old man standing in my house. I mustn't be disarmed by his warm, grandfatherly smile. This guy is still a Mafia boss, a man who ordered the deaths of people in cold-blood.

_If it's to save the lives of his precious people, could it really be that bad?_

I shook my head to clear my thoughts. I didn't want to be a Mafia boss. I shouldn't even be thinking about it.

_Won't you do the same, if only to protect the children? Your brother?_

Shut. Up.

"Good afternoon, Nono," I said in a soft tone. I tried to take a step forward but fell due to my twisted ankle. Damn, I forgot about it. I bit back a sigh as I lay on the ground, contemplating the failure that was my existence. But I guess, this wasn't so bad. This would most definitely keep this… Mafioso from choosing me as his heir.

"Tsu-kun! Papa's here!" my mother's cheerful voice called from inside the house. I quickly scrambled up and ran in. While I disapproved of my father's choice of work, and the fact that he didn't come home often, it wasn't like he could just leave the Mafia and come home, expecting everything to be fine.

_(You can't just _leave_ the Mafia like that.)_

It might be better for him to just stay in Italy and get rid of threats before they could even reach mother and me. Throughout the five years of my life, I've never even felt the slightest assassination attempt. That's got to count for something, right?

_(You just don't want to hate him.)_

(He's my father. I don't want to hate my father.)

_(Is he really?)_

(...)

I pushed away my conflicting thoughts and ignored the piercing pain in my ankle to give my father a large smile. Seeing how his face brightened made it worth it.

_(Is it really?) _

* * *

**Seven years old**

* * *

There's a nice boy in my neighbourhood. I see him every time mother and I go get sushi (from this amazing sushi store, by the way. Takesushi. Damn, they should pay me for advertising, I'm such a good adviser) he'd be there. I think his name is Yamamoto Takeshi. He was always smiling and cheerful. It was nice to be in his presence. It was like all your worries was cleansed from you.

Right. That was a weird description. Ignore me.

Anyway, like I said, he had the most breathtaking smile. But recently, it stopped. I didn't mean he stopped smiling; I meant that his smiles stopped being nice to look at. They didn't reach his eyes, making them the worst smiles in the world.

(You shouldn't force yourself to smile like that.)

I wanted to approach him, I really did, but I wasn't one to make half-assed friendships. I didn't want to drag innocents with me if I ever go into the Mafia world. Yamamoto had black hair and brown eyes, hardly unique enough colouring to be considered a main character in an anime.

It was kind of lonely, but I was okay with it.

_(You're scared.)_

I was totally okay with it. I couldn't have friends if I wanted to be invisible.

_(Afraid of death, are you?)_

I didn't need friends. I had my mother and she was enough. Right?

* * *

**Nine years old **

* * *

A boy, one or two years older than my physical self, jogs by my house every morning. And by morning, I mean ungodly hours of the day. I know that because he shouts out loud every now and then and wakes me up.

His sunny disposition is kind of refreshing. Personally, I feel that he is someone I wouldn't mind being friends with. Also, he has white hair, hardly common colouring. He probably became one of the main characters, or main supporting characters, at least. But… I still couldn't approach him. I…

(I'm scared.)

I don't want to lose this detachment I had. If I started to branch out to other people, if I started to care for other people, I would start believing that this was my life.

_(Isn't it?)_

I… I've already died. This life…

_(I see how it is now. You're afraid to die, and you're afraid to live. Hah. What a way to exist.)_

_(You really are pathetic, Dame-Tsuna.)_

(I guess so, huh?)

* * *

**Author's note:**

It kept bouncing in my head and I needed to get it out. Unbetaed. I hope there's no mistakes.

Also can this person be considered as Tsuna? Idk. I consider them as Tsuna.

"You are afraid to die, and you're afraid to live. What a way to exist."

― Neale Donald Walsch, _Home with God: In a Life That Never Ends_

There, now hopefully lawyers won't come after me.


	2. Chapter 2

**Chapter Two**

* * *

**Thirteen years old**

* * *

**also known as the end of all things rational and sane**

* * *

I can't wait until I'm fourteen. I mean, that's the age the original Tsunayoshi was when Reborn came, right? If he doesn't come by then, I can start living again.

_(Will you?)_

(...)

_(I thought so.)_

"Tsu-kun! A home tutor is coming today!" the door to my room opened and my mother walked in on me lying face down on the floor. She gave a little giggle. "Having an existential crisis again, Tsu-kun?" she asked.

_You have no idea._ I picked myself off the ground and gave her a little smile before her words caught up with me.

"Home tutor?!" That guy… he's coming? So soon? I'm not even fourteen yet! Could I have been mistaken? Probably. I bit back a groan of annoyance. I was not mentally prepared for this. Also, didn't I give that Mafia boss enough reason to not choose me? I appeared physically weak, I was average in everything, I had absolutely _no_ presence whatsoever… And I was clumsy. My physical training helped me a little, though, so instead of tripping every minute, I tripped every other minute.

"There was an interesting flyer in the mailbox," my mother continued, as if she didn't hear me. Knowing her, she probably didn't. She's always in her own little world, making me slightly worried about her. If I didn't accompany her to the market every Sunday, she would most surely get conned by one thing or another.

"I will raise your kid to become the new leader of the next generation. Grade and subject doesn't matter. Doesn't that sound exciting, Tsu-kun?"

"It sounds like a scam!" Yeap, she'd get conned.

"He's probably a tutor from a professional business school for young men. I've always wanted a teacher like this for you!" She was _way_ too excited about this. And how'd she come to that sort of conclusion, anyway?

"Please don't create your own image of him," I sighed. Mum should really stop idealising stuff. And besides, if my hunch was correct, the new 'tutor' is _definitely_ not from a professional business school. I think. Then again, anime logic can never be questioned.

"Ciaossu." The voice came from the middle of the room. I tried not to stiffen up as I slowly turned around to see a baby wearing a black suit and a fedora hat. I stared. It was a legitimate baby. Not a child, not a toddler, but an honest-to-god one year old child standing right there. Just standing.

I think my brain broke.

"I arrived three hours early," the baby said, unaware of the mental breakdown I was going through at the moment, "but as a service, I'll evaluate you right now."

Must not…

I walked over to the baby and knelt down, giving a warm and sincere smile. "Hello mister, who may you be?" I asked in a gentle tone.

Fiddlesticks. My instincts from the past life had taken over. I was going to die.

"Hm? I'm the home tutor, Reborn." The baby looked at me in the eyes and I intuitively moved back a little. Those black eyes… Those eyes did not belong to a child. The baby standing in front of me couldn't be a child. But what could he be? An adult trapped in a child's body? That's absurd.

_(But aren't you an adult trapped in a child's body? And really, you can light flames with a snap of your fingers. That's absurd.)_

Right. Anime. I was in a shonen anime. These things happened. I was probably going to help this guy get back his adult body because people liked happy endings.

I fought back the increasing urge to jump out the window, move to Atlantis or something, and never look back.

Standing up, I gave a small bow and brought my smile to the next level - the closed eye smile. That way the not-baby couldn't see the apprehension in my eyes. "It's nice to meet you, Reborn-san. Please take care of me." Right. I was laying it thick there. He'd obviously be suspicious. Oh dear.

_Back, back, **back**!_

My eyes snapped open and I leaped back just as Reborn swung his leg at me at a frightening speed. The tips of his sole grazed my tie and I tried to land on my feet. Tried. The not-baby jumped up into the air and kicked me in the head, sending me flying into the desk behind me. Hopefully, it wasn't damaged. And my bones didn't break. Darn, I have to sort out my priorities.

"It's nice that you're playing with that baby, Tsu-kun, you're always so good with children! Don't forget to come down for dinner!" After all these years, I still can't believe my mother's obliviousness.

When she was out of the room, I eyed Reborn warily. He didn't seem to care as he opened his briefcase and started to assemble a gun. Professionally. If I had any doubts at that moment, they were all being blown away. After he finished assembling the gun, he picked it up and looked at me in the eye with his two, pitch black, soulless orbs. "My real job," he stated, "is to make you a Mafia boss."

Okay, I expected that, but it didn't really stop my knee-jerk reaction of, "You're kidding."

I kind of just stared at him in a daze, not really listening to his words, until he pointed his gun at my forehead and asked in a tone more suited for discussing the weather, if I'd like for him to shoot me in the head. I spluttered. There was a split second of silence and Reborn kept the gun.

"Not now," he said. A rumble came from his stomach and he left the room. I took a deep breath to relax myself. Was he gone? Was it really so easy? I closed my eyes. No, of course not. Once Reborn came, he was here to stay until I died or I became a Mafia boss. He was probably downstairs, eating dinner. Time to prepare myself.

Wait a second, didn't my brother say something about getting shot and running around in underwear like a maniac?

… I think I'll stay up here to prepare myself a little more. And invest in the most outrageous underwear possible.

Hey, go big or go home, yeah?

* * *

"Let it burn, let it burn," I hummed to myself as lay on my bed and played with my flames. The beautiful bright orange sparked from my fingertips and faded out a few seconds later. When I was playing around with my flames, I found out that as long as they didn't have direct contact with my flesh, they wouldn't burn. It was a bit strange though, wasn't my father supposed to have sealed my flames a super long time ago or something? Or was that just fandom speculation?

Yeah, whatever. I shouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth.

_(Gift horse. Really?)_

"Huh, so you won't need the dying will bullet after all," came a squeaky voice from the side of my bed.

"HIIEE!" I flinched and hit the wall on the other side of my bed. The not-baby was there. I didn't even hear him come in! Then I processed his words. "Dying will bullet?"

Reborn then gave a speech about being in dying will mode - the effect the dying will bullet gave - which I pretty much simplified to removing the mental block on your potential strength. Y'know, those times when you see a mother lift a car to save her child or something? Yeah, that. But just with a fire on your your forehead and no clothes on.

"Um… Reborn-san…"

"Reborn." I was interrupted.

"Okay, Reborn. Who created this 'dying will bullet'?" Why hasn't the government gotten their hands on it yet and messed everything up? Oh wait, Mafia. Silly me.

"The dying will bullet is a specialty passed through the Vongola Family."

"You didn't answer my question… Wait, Vongola Family?" Clam? Of all the names…

"I was assigned by the ninth Vongola boss to come to Japan and raise you to become a Mafia boss." He ignored me!

"What happened to the others? I mean you can't expect me to believe that I'm the first choice, right?" I fidgeted under the not-baby's emotionless gaze. Seriously, those beetle-like black eyes freaked me out.

"You're right. You're the last and only candidate left." He took a deep breath, as if preparing for a speech. I did not like where this was going.

"The first and most qualified candidate, Enrico, was shot in a feud." Oh god, there were pictures. I shied away from them. Ugh, I was never good with gore and dead people.

"The young number two, Matsumo, was drowned." Stop showing me those pictures, for goodness' sake!

"The favourite child, Federico, was found reduced to bone."

"Hiee! You don't have to keep showing them!" He's having way too much fun with this! "Also, I'm pretty sure my dad's not a Mafia boss. I don't think I'm related to the current Vongola boss." Am I?

Turns out I wasn't. Instead, I was related to the first one. Darn, this is the first time I'm hearing all this! And the worst part? The little not-baby just fell asleep. In _my_ bed. I had half a mind to push him off but, upon seeing his sleeping face, I found that I couldn't do a thing to him.

_Why does he sleep with his eyes open holy didgeridoo if I touch him I'll definitely go to hell in two seconds or something._

If you thought it was because I couldn't touch a child, you're partially right. But it was mostly because I was pretty sure Reborn was someone who could take over hell single-handedly. AKA, someone I really don't want to mess with.

_Sigh_. Looks like I'll have to take out the spare futon.

* * *

"_Must_ you follow me to school?" I could just feel my sanity slowly slipping away from me.

"Oh, Sawada-san?" I blinked and looked away from Reborn for a second to see my classmate, Sasagawa Kyoko, standing in front of me. I gave her a small smile and a wave. I quite liked Sasagawa-san; she was nice and friendly, although a bit oblivious, and had a good heart. She kind of reminded me of my mother, now that I thought of it. Huh, no wonder I was fond of her.

"Sasagawa-san, it's nice to see you," I greeted politely. I could see her eyes being drawn to Reborn. Darn, now I have to make an excuse for his presence.

"Ciaossu."

"Hello little guy, why are you wearing a suit?"

"Because I'm in the Mafia." I fought the urge to facepalm. Well, I guess you could do that too. Sometimes I forgot that the truth could be uttered loudly and bluntly, but people would only hear what they want to hear. Humans are kind of… Sigh.

_Incoming, hostile, six o' clock._

My body stiffened and I quickly spun around, adopting an almost defensive position to see… Mochida Kensuke. I but back another sigh as I relaxed. Seriously, what was that all about? Mochida-senpai wasn't a threat, he was a schoolmate! However, my intuition hasn't been wrong before…

Man, this is confusing.

_(Do you doubt yourself, Dame-Tsuna?)_

I gave a slight bow and a polite greeting to the older boy. When he didn't answer, I glanced up at his face and blinked in confusion at the hostility in his eyes. What did I do? What did I do?!

"What are you doing, talking to Kyoko-chan like that?" What. What? What?!

"I said hi to her when I saw her? Like a normal classmate would?" I paused as a thought occurred to me. "Wait, do you like like Sasagawa-san? I thought you were dating Fujimoto-senpai? Or have you guys broken up?" I saw Mochida-senpai and Fujimoto-senpai making out about a week ago. Ah wait, now that I was thinking about it, he was also unusually intimate with Oshiro-san too…

_Cheater, liar, cheater, liar._

Oh. "You're cheating on Fujimoto-senpai?" Now that I think of it, it was a really bad idea to say that out loud. It was also really insensitive and stupid of me. However, it did let me see an interesting sight; the sight of Mochida-senpai reddening in total and utter humiliation and anger.

_Leave. Leave now._

Ah, my intuition was calling me. Goodbye my friends, I am gone.

"U-uh see you in school Mochida-senpai. B-bye," I quickly stuttered out before grabbing Reborn and making a break for Namimori Middle School. I can foresee that this would be one of the points in my life in which I will look back on and regret. Hopefully, hopefully, nothing bad would happen and Mochida-senpai wouldn't do anything to me.

Ahaha, who was I kidding? I'm dead. Goodbye dear anonymity. Goodbye dear peaceful life.

_(It was gone the moment you were born, Da-me-Tsu-na.)_

* * *

_Everything is horrible and I hate the world._ All my classmates were staring at me. Staring and whispering, no doubt horrid rumours of whatever had happened this morning on the way to school. I really want to stay, that as an experienced past-adult, people would grow out of this childish act but I would be lying. It's kind of sad, really.

Thank god it was the end of the school day, though. I was pretty sure if I spent another moment in such a horrid and suffocating environment, I'd start to cry. Oh, and I also need to find Reborn; the guy disappeared the moment I reached school. I wonder where he went. Hope he's not hurt…

_(He won't be. He's a lot better than you are.)_

"Whoa, you can't go home yet!" There were a bunch of boys outside my classroom.

_(Nakahara, Tachibana, Kobayashi. From the Kendo club. Mochida's allies. Our enemies. What're gonna do, Dame-Tsuna?)_

I tensed up. What did they want? To gang up on me? No… that wasn't it. They weren't hostile. Yet.

"Captain Mochida's waiting for you in the dojo."

Oh. _Oh_.

They didn't give me a chance to answer before they scooped me up and proceeded to ran to said dojo.

_I regret everything._

* * *

"There you are, you bastard! How dare you try to sully my name in your attempt to take Kyoko-chan as your own!" Wow, what a beautiful greeting. I have absolutely no idea what he's going on about.

"God may forgive a piece of shit like you, but I won't!" he continued loudly, "I shall smite you!"

Okay, who _actually_ says these kind of things in this day and age?

"Wait, so you _aren't_ dating Fujimoto-senpai and Oshiro-san at the same time?" Ah, he's turning red again. That really is a strange colour. Is it even healthy?

When Mochida-senpai recovered, he began to explain the rules of Kendo to me. He didn't answer my question, which was mean of him. We really need to clear up this confusion.

"The prize is, of course, Sasagawa Kyoko!" he ended off. I twitched.

"Sasagawa-san is _not_ a prize! Do you even respect her as a fellow human being?" Man, I heard rumours about this but I didn't really want to believe them. Looks like Mochida-senpai is an irritating male chauvinist. I had strong feelings of dislike towards these sort of people due to the way my mother brought me up in my past life.

_(But not this one. Sawada Nana seems to allow people from everywhere to walk over her. So much weaker than your previous mother.)_

(She is strong in her own right. Please do not compare them.)

Oh. Mochida-senpai is turning that interesting colour again.

_Go get your shinai. No, not that one. Not the one they're carrying. It's bad._

I bypassed the shinai Mochida-senpai's juniors were carrying, making a beeline to the selection of shinais available. Quietly listening to my intuition, I ran my hand over each one before stopping when I received a positive feeling.

I grabbed the shinai and turned around, choosing to forego the (super heavy) armour, to face Mochida-senpai. He gave a smirk. "Are you sure you don't want to wear the armour?" he asked in a condescending tone. Wow. What a douchelord. I could only nod in agreement. His smirk got wider.

"I won't hold back! Eat this, you peon!" He swung his shinai down on me with frightening force. I jumped back to avoid the blow and, after that, everything blurred into the familiar haze of instincts and intuition.

_Dodge, dodge, dodge. Make your first strike your last._

_An opening!_

My shinai landed straight on his head, forcing him to his knees. Oops, I used a bit more force than I should've. Looking at the referee, I was slightly surprised to see him not raising my flag. Didn't he see me bring his captain to his knees? Pretty sure the whole school saw it. Why wouldn't the guy raise the flag? Unless…

Wow, this guy's great at making himself look bad, huh? I don't even need to do anything.

_Dodge, hit._

Mochida (not senpai because I'm not going to give a cheating, lying, chauvinist any respect) actually fell to the ground this time. I think I actually gave him a concussion. Oh dear. I glanced at the referee again, this time letting my eyes go half-lidded. I felt a warmth seep through me that meant orange was bleeding into the brown of my eye (which I never really got but chalked it up to one of those Anime Things) and watched with satisfaction as the referee flinched and quickly raised my flag. Fighting back a smirk, I gave him a bright smile. There was a moment of utter silence before everyone in the dojo suddenly ran up to me with a roar. I flinched violently, letting out a somewhat embarrassing shriek.

"Congratulations! You won!" Was the start of a thousand other friendly shouts and pats. Suddenly, everyone knew my name. It was overwhelming and terrifying at the same time.

_Seriously. I regret everything._

* * *

"Sawada-san!" Someone called out just as I left the dojo. It was Sasagawa-san and Kurokawa-san. Tilting my head slightly to the side, I gave a small smile and waited for her to speak.

"Thanks for standing up for me." She gave a shy smile, not meeting my eyes. Kurokawa-san gave me a smirk. I suddenly felt pretty uncomfortable and flustered. I could just feel myself blushing.

"It's no problem, Sasagawa-san" I muttered, looking on the ground. "Anyone would do that."

"Please, call me Kyoko! We're friends, right?" I paused. Friends, huh? I…

_(Gonna turn her down? Well of course you are, coward. Dame-Tsuna, stuck in the past, never being able to move forward. Alone. You'll di-)_

"Then I would like it if you called me Tsuna. Same goes to you, Kurokawa-san." I gave another, much brighter smile.

_(Well this is new.)_

"Tch, I guess you can call me Hana."

_(You're starting to move on.)_

"Kyoko-chan and Hana-chan, then?"

(Is that a bad thing?)

"Sure."

_(Well, that's entirely up to you, isn't it, Sawada Tsunayoshi?)_

* * *

**Author's note**: Somehow the tone changed. Ugh.

I was gonna put Gokudera in? But he didn't make it. That's sad. He'll be in the next chapter though, I'm sure of it.

Wonder who's the dude talking in the italic brackets. I don't know either, but I have an idea.

Seriously, what happened to this Tsunayoshi? I was gonna make him withdrawn but still with a quiet confidence. But with a low self-esteem? Not really low self-esteem, he just thinks that others think the worst of him.

And pairings. Huh. I don't think there'll be any pairings.

(just wait im gonna turn this into all27 or something just for shits and giggles)

Also should I do future arc or what. Nice!Byakuran? Because if it's nice!Byakuran, I have an idea.

I want to deviate from canon but it doesn't seem like it's gonna happen. I'll try though.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter Three**

* * *

**I can't believe this. Is this seriously my life?**

* * *

I haven't exactly expressed negativity to becoming a Mafia boss, but I didn't say yes either. This was probably the reason why Reborn was currently holding me at gunpoint as I read an extremely biased book about Mafia bosses. Propaganda, basically.

"Read it every morning," Reborn had told me, "because you are the guy who will become the tenth generation boss." I kind of wanted to say no but the bright shine of the black gun in the not-baby's hand stopped me. My options lay before me: die, or become a Mafia boss. I don't really know which was worst, to be honest.

_Look at the time._

I glanced at the clock and immediately burst into action, swinging up my bag and leaving the room with a quick "See you" to Reborn. It was seven forty-five and if I didn't leave now, I'll be late.

With a disciplinary committee like Namimori Middle's, being late is a fate worse than death.

* * *

'"SAWADA! I need to ask a favour from you!" was literally what greeted me first thing in the morning in school. Seriously. Worst part? I can't turn it down. It's not within me to do so.

_(I really want to know how you grew up to be such a pushover.)_

"The volleyball tournament is today, but we are short a regular. I want you to play!" my schoolmate begged. I just stared at him incredulously. Did I look like the type of person that could play volleyball? I'd trip and fall flat on my face.

"Why me?" I finally forced out.

"Because you looked really amazing when you beat Mochida-senpai! Please, lend us that strength!" His eyes were glittering with some kind of emotion. Man, I hate that emotion. It makes it even harder to say no. No wait, what are you doing? Don't…

He clasped his hands together and gave me a ninety degree bow. "Come on! I'm begging you! Please!"

One second… two seconds… three seconds…

"I guess I could do it…" Wait, what am I saying?

"Seriously? Man, if the hero that beat senpai joins, We have nothing to fear! Thank yoouuu!" And with that, he ran off. 'Hero', huh? I inwardly whimpered.

You see, I had a bad track record with sports. Like, really bad. Sports like boxing, or aikido, or parkour… Those I have no troubles with, really. But the ones that include balls, like baseball, basketball, tennis… Well…

Okay, so one time I was seven and my father decided to try to play baseball with me. I don't know what possessed him to try, really, but it was a Bad Idea. For me, at least. Well, so he threw the ball at me. I dropped the bat and tried to smack the ball away with my bare hands but failed epically, causing said ball to hit me in the face and give me a concussion.

The other time I tried to play tennis. I swung the racket too hard, and too wrong, making it fly out of my hands and into the air. It hit the tree branch above me and broke it. The tree branch fell on my head and I got a concussion.

When I was playing basketball in gym, some guy tried to pass the ball to me. The ball bypassed my hands and smacked me in the face, causing me to fly backwards and bash my head against the cold, hard ground. I spent the rest of the day in the nurse's office due to my concussion.

That should be enough evidence as to why I had an aversion to sports. Especially ball games. Specifically ball games. Like volleyball.

I am going to die, I can just see it. Death by volleyball. What a way to go.

* * *

"Sawada, we're starting!" Oh god oh god oh god it's starting, I'm going to die.

I gave them a small, polite smile. "Please go ahead first. I need to take care of something." It's nice that my voice came out without any problems. When they were gone, I stood up and started running through the school, searching for the little not-baby.

"Reborn! Where are you!" A familiar smell assaulted me. Espresso. It's coming from-

Bam, the door to the fire hose reel cabinet swung open violently and smacked me in the leg. I collapsed onto the floor, holding my shin and moaning softly in agony.

"Ciaossu," the little devil spawn greeted. My reply was a high pitched keen.

"So, the volleyball tournament." Oh. Of course he knew. Why wouldn't he?

"Yeah, the volleyball tournament. Um… if I die, who would take over Vongola?" I tried to ask this as nonchalantly as possible, so as to not arouse any suspicion. I could tell it did not work when Reborn gave me a weird look.

"No one. The Vongola will die out." I wasn't quite sure if he was serious or not. "Why do you ask?" I fidgeted under the piercing black eyes of Reborn. Finally, I broke.

"I'm probably going to die during volleyball. I can't play ball games without injuring myself," I confessed. Argh, dug up bad memories. Gotta suppress them again.

"So, why did you accept the request?" Reborn raised a patronising eyebrow. I grimaced.

"Because he said please." Silence. Reborn stared at me blankly and I could feel my face heating up. Don't look at me like that! I already know I'm a pushover, I don't need you to rub it in my face!

"Look, he and his friends obviously hold this tournament in pretty high regard, and he came to me, which obviously means all other resources have been used up. If I don't go for the tournament, all their hard work in practicing for it will be gone and they'll be sad and I don't like people being sad when I could've made them unsad and-"

"Tsuna-kun!" A voice cut off my babbling. It was Kyoko. "You're playing volleyball, right? The stadium is this way! If you don't hurry, the game'll start without you."

"Ah, but…" I turned to find Reborn but he was gone. Kyoko grabbed my hand and started pulling.

"Come on, hurry up! Everyone is waiting!"

_I'm going to cry._

* * *

This is annoying. This is worse than the time Mochida decided to be an ass. Everyone was staring at me again. They were relying on me. Why were they relying on me? I was a wildcard, and they only saw me sparring against Mochida. I could be horrible at volleyball and they wouldn't even know it! In fact, I was horrible at volleyball! Oh my god, I was going to die.

_(Don't be so melodramatic, Dame-Tsuna. And besides, why would it matter if you die? You don't belong here anyway.)_

"Begin!"

Of course, like I predicted, the ball smashed into my face. Thankfully, I did not get a concussion again. Well, at least the ball bounced back over the net, so the team was still safe. I just hope the rest of the game wouldn't be that bad.

"Tsuna here it comes!"

Of course, as fate would have it, I was hit in the head again.

* * *

"End of the first set!"

I collapsed onto the floor, only just biting back a moan of agony. A bunch of players rushed to my side.

"Sawada, are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Just a little tired."

"You're hurt! You should go sit out…" I snapped my head up to glare at him.

"Everyone else is hurt as well! I can't possibly just sit out while you guys are trying your best. You guys say you're serious about this match… well so am I!" I took in a deep breath to calm myself. "Sorry for shouting like that. I shouldn't have lost my temper." The whole stadium was silent. Darn, I just embarrassed myself. I could feel my cheeks heating up.

"Um, I'm gonna go… wash my face. I'll be back before break's over. Yeah." I scrambled to my feet and rushed out of the stadium, unwilling to meet anyone's eyes.

* * *

I really didn't want to go back, but I also didn't want to disappoint anyone. But really, what could I do? Use my weird orange fire thing to fly? Well, sure I could do that, but it was extremely dangerous, and I was pretty sure the men in white coats would drag me away the next day. Also, flying was not a good experience for me.

I'm not going to dredge up the memories. The ball game flashbacks were bad enough.

"Hey Reborn," I muttered when I felt a familiar presence. The presence stilled for a split second before jumping onto my head. I gave a small smile. "How're you?"

"I think I should be asking you that, Baka-Tsuna." I jerked in surprise.

"What's with the nickname?" I lifted him up from my head and settled him in my lap. Really, I couldn't help it; I liked cuddling people and Reborn looked adorable. Of course, his personality was another matter entirely…

"What are you doing?" Reborn tone was setting off multiple danger alarms on my head and I reluctantly let him go. Couldn't take part in the volleyball tournament if I was dead.

"Nnngh, I better get going. See you, Reborn."

I felt his eyes on my back as I left, conveying some emotion I wasn't sure I wanted to know. Suddenly, I felt _very_ worried for my existence.

* * *

"Tsuna!" someone yelled as I fell to the ground. Something had pierced through my left and right leg, but what? Though there were holes in my pants, there was no blood. Nothing seemed wrong.

The sudden, biting pain seemed familiar though.

"I'm fine, I'm fine." Never mind about that, I have more pressing things to attend to. I'll have to think about it later.

"Here it comes, Tsuna! Block the ball!"

"Okay!" I jumped, and things got a bit weird.

_How the hell am I two metres off the ground?!_

* * *

"You shot me." Reborn had just finished explaining the other effects of the dying will bullet.

"I thought you would depend on the bullet, so I didn't say anything about it. However, you never did. You didn't even _think_ about asking me to shoot you with the bullet." There was a strange inflection in his voice but I didn't pay much attention to it.

"You shot me."

"Of course I did. I'm a hitman, after all."

"You _shot_ me."

Reborn kicked me in the head and snapped me out of my shock. Still, I couldn't help but be a little distracted.

The pain was from a gunshot wound. As far as I've known, I've _never_ been shot before. So why had the pain seemed familiar? Why was it that I've felt that I had experienced such pain before?

_(Are you sure you've never been shot before?)_

I tried my best to remain invisible. My father kept Namimori safe from possible assassins. I kept out of the way of anything and anyone dangerous. There was absolutely no way I would know how it would feel getting shot.

_(How about your past life?)_

(I've never gotten shot.)

_(Really. How did you die, then?)_

(I…)

_(C'mon, why don't you remember, Dame-Tsuna? How you died on that Saturday morning.)_

(No, I…)

_(That sunny Saturday morning. You were with your brother and-)_

(No, nO, NO! I DON'T WANT TO REMEMBER! NO, YOU CAN'T MAKE ME!)

Yeah, absolutely no way I'd know how it'll feel like to be shot.

* * *

**They sicken of calm who know of storm**

* * *

"We have a new transfer student who was studying overseas in Italy. Gokudera Hayato." I perked up. Transfer student from Italy! Seeing his silver hair and green eyes, I just knew he was going to know me. Maybe he'll be my friend?

I offered a hesitant smile to the boy only to flinch when he glared at me.

_Okay… maybe not friends…_

He started walking towards me.

_Hostile. Shift your chair backwards._

I did as my intuition asked just in time to avoid getting hurt when the transfer student kicked my table.

_What did I do? How did I offend him on our first meeting?_

I tried my best to ignore the girls loudly talking about his intimidating behaviour. Getting attracted to this kind of behaviour is plain unhealthy.

* * *

Right, the seniors in my school that try to be gangsters? They're total assholes. Seriously.

Anyway, as I was running away from them (like hell I'd fight them in the school hallways and risk the wrath of the disciplinary committee), I found Gokudera. Or rather, he found me.

Then he told me that he had been stalking me since the volleyball tournament and that if a "doormat wallflower" like me became the Vongola Decimo, the Vongola family would be finished. Wow, thanks for your lovely words of encouragement mister. As if I don't know that already.

Then, he dropped the bomb. "I refuse to accept it. I'm the one who's fit to become Decimo!"

What. Didn't Reborn say that if I die, the Vongola family would be finished?

Gokudera shoved his hands into his pockets and pulled out two sticks of dynamites. Hah. Dynamites.

_What the bloody hell-_

"You're a nuisance. Die right here."

Then he lit the dynamites and threw them at me. Lit dynamites! With his cigarette! Are fourteen year olds even allowed to smoke?

_My brother didn't say shit about this!_

I was about to leap away when something whistled past the front of my face at an alarming speed, cutting off the flaming part of the dynamite and preventing a horridly large explosion from tearing me apart.

"Ciaossu." Of course it's him. "You came earlier than expected, Gokudera Hayato." I jerked in surprised, although I wasn't quite sure why. It should be pretty obvious that this seemingly out of nowhere transfer student from Italy came to Japan on the not-baby's orders. Italy. Mafia central.

Yeah, I shouldn't have been surprised.

"So, you're the ninth generation's most trusted assassin, Reborn," Gokudera said. I didn't really like his tone. "You're not kidding about me being a candidate as the successor if I kill Sawada, right?" Yeap, there it is. The sound of Reborn's total and utter betrayal.

"You liar, Reborn! You said-"

"Yeah, that's right. Well, let's continue with the killing." He not only cut me off, he didn't answer my question and _lied_ to me! That total utter meanie.

_(Traitor. Oh well, it's not like he can betray you anyway. I mean, how can you betray someone that puts no trust in you?)_

I turned to make a strategic retreat but my road was blocked by Gokudera. Gokudera and his mouth full of cigarettes and hands full of dynamites.

"HIEEE!" I jumped out of the blast range, barely listening to Reborn's (not very helpful) explanation about the hostile transfer student and his skills. Yeah, he's a pretty good dynamite user; I kind of gathered that when I saw him magically pull out dynamite from thin air and used them.

And of course, my horrid luck decided to manifest itself in me running into a dead end. Man, years in this school and I still can't find my way around the school.

"This is it," Gokudera hissed and hurled a bunch of dynamites at me. I tensed up, ready to pull out my orange flames, when I felt the same piercing pain in my forehead.

That was when things went kind of pear-shaped.

* * *

When I was in full control of my body again, and no longer running around in a haze of passion and strong emotions, I found myself in my boxers and kneeling on the ground, surrounded with defused dynamites. Organising my thoughts, I made to stand up but was badly startled by a loud slam behind me.

"I was mistaken! You're the one who's fit to be the boss!"

I warily turned around to see Gokudera on the ground in a dogeza.

"Tenth! I'll follow you! Command me to do anything!" His face was scarily earnest. Terrifyingly earnest. The sudden change in personality made me disturbed and wary. What did he want?

"Having the loser serve under the winner is a family rule," Reborn told me. I frowned. I didn't want someone to follow me out of pure obligation. Gokudera seemingly read my mind as he explained to me the reason for his strange behaviour.

"Actually… I didn't really have any ambition to be the tenth. It's just that… when I heard that the tenth was a Japanese boy the same age and me, I felt that I had to test his strength." He looked so much like a guilty, wronged, scolded child that I couldn't help myself.

Giving him a gentle smile, I asked, "So, did I get your approval?"

His head jerked up so fast to meet my gaze that I was afraid he'd get whiplash. "Of course you did, tenth! For putting yourself on the line to save me, I'll place my life in your hands!" O...kay… The amount of devotion shining in his eyes really can't be healthy.

"Ah, um, can you not? I mean, can't we just be friends?"

"Absolutely not." I flinched from his sharp gaze. Alright, shutting up now.

"Gokudera became your subordinate because of your strength." The little not-baby had the audacity to look smug. "Good job Tsuna."

"Ah look, these guys are cutting class." The three of us turned to see some seniors leering at us. The same seniors I bumped into earlier today. Well, the day can't get any worse than this, can it?

"Tenth. Leave this to me," Gokudera's voice sounded extremely angry, with an undercurrent of overprotectiveness, "I'll get rid of them."

"No wait, Gokudera-san! Don't use the dynamite!"

* * *

"Please don't shoot me again." Those were the first words that left my mouth when Reborn and I were in the safety of my room.

(Please don't make me relive the pain, please don't let me remember, I don't want to remember.)

Reborn's beetle black eyes glittered dangerously. "And why not?"

"I don't need it. I had it under control."

"It didn't seem like that to me."

"I thought you said that I didn't need the bullet." Frustration was creeping into my tone. Can't he see that I could take care of myself? I've been doing fine for more than thirteen years; I didn't need some infant on a power trip to mess it up.

"I thought you could handle yourself." I hated it. I hated his deadpan tone. I hated the nonchalant way he spoke, as if he wasn't stripping away _what little control I had in my life_.

"I can!"

Reborn raised a skeptical eyebrow. "Can you?"

And then the realisation struck me. It was clear now. He didn't trust me.

_(Of course he didn't. You don't trust him, why should he trust you?)_

"I'm sorry." _I'm sorry I can't trust you. I'm sorry you can't trust me._

(I can't trust anyone here.)

Reborn gave me an odd look but said nothing as he left the room for dinner. A few minutes later, I followed him, in control of myself once again.

We didn't talk until the next day.

* * *

**Author's note: **Yamamoto next chapter. Not sure how I'm going to go about it though.

tbh I don't know how Tsuna's past life died either.

Seriously, I'm just gonna keep updating and writing this story until I run outta ideas then I will cry.

I hope I can deviate from canon soon. I have an idea. Kinda.

**Zecret:** Thank you for the review, Zecret! I'm glad you liked my story. Ah, have you published your reader insert? If you have, may I read it? It sounds interesting!

**Ivise:** Thanks for the review~ Haha, I'm not too sure about my nice!Byakuran idea yet. It sounds too... _eh_. All27? I like all27 but I'm not too big on writing romance. If it's all27, it'll most likely be one-sided all27. No angst and arguments on the relationship side because romance is not a big thing in the story.

(If it's bad!Byakuran, this Tsuna's gonna die ahahahahahaha)

Sorry I couldn't reply to your reviews before. I was kinda preoccupied.

"They sicken of the calm who know the storm."

― _Dorothy Parker, Sunset Gun_

(**In all honesty**? I appreciate any reviews I get and stuff. It makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside. I'm not gonna lie and say you don't have to leave reviews if you don't want to, because I'd like them. But hey, I doubt I'm gonna stop writing, reviews or not. So yeah. I guess as long as you enjoy the story, I'm happy.)


	4. Chapter 4

**Warning:** Touches slightly on suicide here.

(Look I'm not trying to make this Tsuna **romantically depressed** or something. It's an important plot point development for later, though I wish I could think of a better way to go about it. Self harm is bad. Suicide is not right. If you are depressed or even contemplating suicide, please talk to an adult or peer you trust. There are also hotlines for this. Don't do anything rash, you'll 100% regret it.)

* * *

**Chapter Four**

* * *

**When He removes something from your possession it is only in order to empty your hands for an even greater gift.**

* * *

My luck has officially ran out. I can't avoid baseball anymore. No medical reasons, no convenient stomachache, no 'oh I forgot to bring my gym clothes'.

"Are we done choosing teams?" I tried to make myself as small as possible. Hopefully, they'd look over me and not notice my presence like they had done for the past thirteen years of my life.

"Just one left!" _Goddammit_ who was the idiot who- Oh. Yamamoto Takeshi.

"I can't play baseball. I swear. You really don't want me on your team." I waved my hands in front of my face wildly. I don't want to chance another concussion. I've heard that if you reached seven, you die.

"Don't be like that, Sawada! Just join our team!" A hand over my shoulder. A cheerful voice. Guess who.

"Are you serious?" I gave Yamamoto an incredulous look.

He gave me a blinding grin that was all _wrong_ and said, "Of course! I just have to keep the opposition from hitting, right?" I frowned and looked around me to see the reactions of others to his words. To my surprise, they just nodded.

"I… You… It's not right for a whole group to rely on one person for victory. I mean I don't really play baseball but baseball is a team sport right? Shouldn't everyone put in the same amount of effort?" Yamamoto gave me a sharp look, followed by a soul searching gaze. I fidgeted under his stare and quickly dislodged his arm from my shoulder.

"What? It's only right," I muttered, staring at my feet.

"You're alright," Yamamoto said. I looked up and stared at him when I saw a gentle smile on his face.

"If Yamamoto says so, then it's fine!" one of the other teammates butted in and immediately, I could see Yamamoto's expressive brown eyes deaden and his smile turn into something horrible.

"Um-" I started, only to be cut off by Yamamoto and that horrible, _horrible_ smile.

"C'mon Sawada! The game's starting!"

Faced with that smile, I couldn't say anything, and just submitted.

* * *

In the end, we still lost; and since I had said that I was horrible at baseball, I became the scapegoat.

Giving a loud sigh, I held the broom in one hand and watched as the other members of my team went home. So much for team spirit.

"Help has arrived!" a voice said from behind me. Given that I was busy focusing on the injustice of human behaviour, I was startled by Yamamoto's sudden announcement. Badly startled. Letting out a loud shriek, I jerked forwards and fell flat on my face, losing my grip on the broom. The broom proceeded to clatter to the ground beside me loudly. I felt my face heat up at my clumsy display.

Quickly scrambling to my feet I grabbed the broom up and started sweeping mechanically. I could feel that my face was still incredibly red. "Sorry you had to see that," I laughed nervously, "I mean, you've already seen my miserable attempt at baseball."

It's true that I tried my best, but the results of the match were pretty bad.

"It's no problem, Sawada. It's just baseball. You've gotten pretty good in other things. Like the volleyball tournament, and the kendo battle! Compared to me, who can only play baseball…"

I was silent, not knowing what to say to that. I hated the voice he was using, so broken and so _wrong_. I tried to cheer him up.

"Even if you can only play baseball, you're pretty good at it. Like a genius! You must have worked very hard!" Yes, I am the master at cheering people up. It is me.

"Yeah, but it's not going so well for me," Yamamoto admitted. I blinked.

"What?"

"Lately, no matter how much I practice, my average is dropping and my fielding is screwing up." A slump? "Tsuna, what should I do?"

My mouth dropped open. "You're asking me." I was so shocked my words couldn't even come out as a question.

"Just kidding!" There it was again, that horrible smile. "Lately you've been so reliable so I just…"

"Don't smile like that." The words were out before I could stop them.

"Smile like what?" He was still smiling that wrong smile. I tried to say something but nothing came out. I didn't want to seem like a pretentious little dork. I've never talked to him before, and now I stride up to him like a cocky jerk, telling him to change? What right do I have?

(What right do I have to have friends?)

"It's nothing." I gave an exasperated sigh and buried my face in my hands. Why can't I do anything right? There was a tense silence in the air.

"I…" I began slowly, "I think that you're putting too much pressure on yourself. You played fine during gym today. Then again, I don't play baseball so my advice may not be accurate. What do you think you should do?" Shut up, Tsuna, before you make things worse.

"Maybe I need to practice more?" He looked at me unsurely and I gave an encouraging smile in return.

"If that's what you think you should do, then do it."

Yamamoto gave me such a nice smile that I never once stopped to contemplate why my mind was whispering in disapproval and apprehension.

* * *

"Yamamoto's going to jump off the roof! When he was practicing yesterday after school, he went too far and broke his arm!"

Everything in me froze.

_(Oh dear. What're gonna do now, Dame-Tsuna? Pushing someone to suicide, you really are no good, huh?)_

And then white hot anger coursed through me. How dare he, how dare he?

_Your fault, your fault, your fault._

I ran up to the roof with a single mindedness that might've frightened me had I been in my right mind and pushed past the horde of people crowding around the entrance. There was a large space between the front of the crowd and Yamamoto, as if a single step closer would tip the young baseball player off the roof. I paid it no mind as I strode forward to the rusty chain link fence and glared at Yamamoto.

"What do you think you're doing?" I hissed. Yamamoto looked taken aback for a second before a self-deprecating smile crossed his face.

"If you came to stop me, it's no use," he told me.

"Bull_shit_! It's _never_ too late! It's idiotic to throw away your life for something as small as a broken arm!"

"Shut up, Sawada! You're suddenly so good at things, rising to the spotlight… You don't know how I feel! You don't know how it feels to want to die! You have _everything_!"

"You don't know _shit_ about me!" My chest heaved as I panted and my heart raced.

(A silver blade glinted in the dim light of the toilet. A hand lay on the knob of the tap, ready to turn it on.

It would be so easy.

_I don't belong here._

"Tsu-kun! It's time for dinner!"

A pause. The blade falls to the ground, the sound echoing in the empty bathroom, and the hand retracts from the tap, as if burnt.

_I can't go. She needs me._)

"The baseball god has thrown me away. I have nothing left."

"How about your father?" I challenged. The memory of the smiling man from the sushi shop flitted across my mind. "How would he feel, having to bury you?" I held his eyes and watched as pain bloomed in them.

"I…" He was unsure.

"Yamamoto Takeshi," my tone was softer now, "A broken arm can heal, a dead person is never coming back. There is still a tomorrow for you." I paused. "You know, I used to admire you. You kept going despite everything that life threw at you, and you kept smiling for other people, even if it hurt you to do so. But if you step over that ledge, then you're not the person I came to admire, but a coward."

I took a step back, my burning anger subdued to mere embers. I felt tired and weary.

"Still, it's always your choice," I finally said and turned to walk away.

"Wait, Sawada!" I hand gripped my back of my shirt and pulled. My body tensed up and my intuition started screaming in horror.

"No, Yamamoto-" My back hit the rusty fence and, of course, the unreliable thing _broke_. I crashed into Yamamoto, tipping him off the edge of the roof. Then, the both of us were falling.

(I don't want him to die.)

My right hand shot out to grab his arm as I shouted to him, "Don't let go!"

_(Do you want to do this? Really? Just for a random boy who would most likely never bother you again?)_

(...)

(Yes.)

Burning orange flames covered my left hand, but it wasn't enough. Yamamoto was staring at my hand in a strange mix of shock, horror and _ohmygodwhatisthat_. I didn't pay him any attention as I gritted my teeth and increased the flame output in that one hand, whilst trying my best to prevent my right hand from bursting into flames as well.

Using the flames as a thrust, I managed to slow down our descent. Still, it wasn't enough to escape injury. Twisting so that my body would hit the ground first, I braced for impact.

Thump!

My body hit the ground hard, face first, but, to my eternal surprise, I didn't break anything. Pretty sure my body was badly bruised, though, and my left hand was screaming in agony. The warmth on top of me shifted.

"Sawada…" Yamamoto breathed.

"I'd prefer it if you didn't tell anyone about the orange fire," I muttered, still face down. I wondered if the reason I could take damage well was because my body trained itself with the many, many times I fell down stairs. "Oh, and call me Tsuna. Pretty sure we're already past the last name stage."

"I won't tell, Tsuna," he swore, a strange inflection in his tone. I wondered what it was. Reminded me a bit of Gokudera for some reason… Argh, can't think. I'll deal with it later.

"Thanks, Yamamoto-san." I was going to pass out soon.

"Oh, that's not fair!" he laughed. It was a beautiful laugh, much better than any I've heard from him in the past few years. "If I'm calling you Tsuna, you should call me Takeshi!"

I tried to turn to my side to smile at Yamamoto- no, Takeshi. "You should laugh like that more often, Tak'shi." Oh dear, I'm starting to slur my words. Damn, did I get a concussion again? "It's a beautiful laugh. I like the way you say my name too." Now I need to get Gokudera to say Tsuna and then all of us can be great friends. Best friends. Why are there black spots in my line of sight?

I could see that there was a slight dusting of pink on Takeshi's cheeks but the colour quickly faded out of them once he got a good look at me. "Tsuna, are you alright?"

"I'm sleepy."

"No, Tsuna! I think you have a concussion. Please stay awake, I'll bring you to the nurse's office!" He sounds really panicked. Then, his words registered in my brain. Another concussion? This sucks. Sleeping in a concussion is bad, too. I have to stay… awake…

"Tsuna!"

* * *

I woke up to the sound of someone shouting.

"-your fault tenth is in the hospital-"

I let out a groan and tried to turn over to block out the noise. Instantly, the shouting stopped and I felt someone run to my side.

"Tenth! You're okay! Shall I get rid of the baseball idiot for you?" Oh, it was Gokudera.

"No, it's fine." Why is everything so loud?

"Tsuna! I forgot to say this earlier but thanks for saving me! Haha!"

"Don't call tenth so casually, baseball freak!"

I wanted to cry. The noise wasn't helping my headache.

"Gokudera-kun, Takeshi can call me Tsuna if he wants. I'd also like it if you would call me Tsuna too." Ah, did I say something wrong? Why was he looking at me like he was about to cry? Did I do something wrong again? A taboo in the Mafia world, perhaps? I've always known that I"m too straightforward for my own good. Oh my god he's crying. Send help.

"Tenth, you are truly too kind! I am unworthy of your presence!" I DON'T UNDERSTAND.

"A-ah, um, Well, we're friends right? So we should call each other by our first names…" I trailed off when there was no visible change in Gokudera's state and shot a distressed look at Takeshi. The smile on his face took my breath away. I remembered that smile from many, many years ago, when things were much simpler and life easier to live.

"I really like this smile," I told him bluntly, "It's been forever since I've seen you smiling such a nice smile." There was silence in the room as Takeshi's face slowly turned red.

"Baka-Tsuna." The space beside me dipped down. I was wondering when he'd show up.

"Hello Reborn. How have you been?"

"Congratulations on the new Family member, Tsuna." I paused. Out of the corner of my eye, I saw both Takeshi and Gokudera freeze up, but I paid them no attention.

"Takeshi's not going to be involved in this. He's a normal boy with a whole life ahead of him. I didn't save his life just to take it away again," I hissed, eyes cold. "Besides, he can be my friend just fine without being in the-" I glanced towards Takeshi who now looked confused, "uh, whatever I'm in."

"What _are_ you in?" Takeshi asked. I hesitated.

_He deserves to know the truth._

(I don't want him to leave me.)

"The Mafia. Baka-Tsuna's going to be the tenth generation boss of the Vongola Family, the largest Family in the Mafia world," Reborn answered. I looked down at my hands. Now, he'll start to keep his distance. Well, it's only right. I mean, who'd _want_ to get involved in the Mafia?

_(Yeah, it's not like you're worth it, Dame-Tsuna.)_

"How do I join?"

My head shot up and I gaped at Takeshi. What…?

He was smiling at me. "You saved me, Tsuna. I'd go anywhere for you." There was a bout of silence in the room before Takeshi broke it again. "Ah, does this mean I can be your right hand man?" he laughed. Gokudera spluttered.

"Excuse me? I'll have you know that I'm the tenth's right hand man!" he growled out, "I refuse to accept an idiot like you into the Family!"

As the two of them got into a lively argument, I could only sit there and smile in guilty relief.

I didn't want Takeshi to go. That's why I didn't argue with him.

I really am a bad person, huh?

* * *

"I would like a strawberry cheesecake and a chocolate marshmallow pie please!"

I don't know if this was even mentioned in the anime my brother watched, but there is this place in Namimori which sells desserts that are _orgasmic_.

"Can I have a marshmallow pie without the marshmallows?"

"Excuse me? But marshmallows are the best part!"

"Without marshmallows? My, you really have no taste in food, do you?"

I turned towards the poor, mistaken person who made the order at the same time the boy beside me did, criticising her choice of food indignantly. I glanced at the boy in surprise, and froze.

("Y'know, I never really liked people with purple eyes," my brother told me, "Especially the ones with silver-white hair. Man, those guys are _crazy_ and _wow_ do they have _issues_.")

"Oh, I never expected to see you so soon, Tsunayoshi-kun." The boy gave a dangerous smirk and led me to a table at the corner of the dessert shop. "Sit down, we have so _much_ to talk about!"

_Help me_.

* * *

**Author's note: **Yeah we all know who's that.

I dislike the ending for this chapter. Ugh. A bit too abrupt.

Anyway, thanks for all the favourites and follows. (:

Ah yes, the slight deviation from canon occurs. Also I really want to save the Kokuyo gang but have no idea how. Oh well.

I can't see italics when I'm on google chrome in my phone. That's horrible. Can you guys see the italics?

All27?

**Eovin:** Thank you for the delightful review! I'm glad you enjoy the story~ I hope I can continue performing to your expectations.

Full quote

"When Allah tests you, it is never to destroy you. When He removes something from your possession it is only in order to empty your hands for an even greater gift."

_—Ibn Qayyim Al-Jawziyyah_

(and before you ask, I'm not Muslim. Sorry about that. Just thought it was a meaningful quote.)


	5. Chapter 5

**Announcement **there will be no pairings but I'm pretty sure I'm gonna put in fanservice for the hell of it. Yeah. Both heterosexual and homosexual, but you don't have to pay attention to it if you don't want to. Byakuran's a teasing meanie that likes to see Tsuna's flustered face.

Mostly because I can't write pure romance for my life. I'll focus on the plot (which is the character development of Sawada Tsunayoshi? idk)

Also I have run out of inspiration. You will wait long for the second chapter. Sorry 'bout that.

If you want me to write anything specific, just let me know. I'll see if I can fit it in and I'll credit you if I do.

* * *

**Chapter Five**

* * *

**If the multiverse theory is true, then there is a universe where it isn't**

* * *

"So, you're a hacker?"

"No, I'm not."

"Part of the disciplinary committee?"

"Thank heavens, _no_."

"Do you by any chance have a twin brother or sister?"

"Not that I know of."

This guy has been asking me increasingly strange and invasive questions about my personal life. The worst part? He knows my name and I still don't know his. Well, I shouldn't need to be very afraid, though. Judging from his questions, if he's a stalker, he's a very bad one.

Purple eyes stare into mine with a frightening intensity. I begin to fidget and stare down at my lap. Seriously, who was this guy and what did he want from me?

"Judging from what you said, you're painfully normal. There's not much different from him," the creepy stalker-esque guy mused.

_Who are you comparing me to and will you stop it?_

"Maa, the only difference is that I've gained my memories earlier and we've met way before we should've. Wait." He hit his fist against the palm of his other hand as if he just had an epiphany. Then, he smiled at me a strange smile that I definitely didn't like the look of.

Grabbing both of my hands, he leaned forward, over the table and into my personal bubble. "This must be a love story between Tsunayoshi-kun and me!"

I couldn't help it. I hit him.

* * *

"Tenth, who is this?" Hayato asked me. He seemed to be glaring slightly at the unwanted guest that had attached itself to me.

"Ah, this is Gesso Byakuran. I met him earlier today at the dessert shop." I tried to give a reassuring smile. I really did. However, it was rather difficult to do so when Byakuran had absolutely zero sense of personal boundaries. I am ninety-seven percent sure he's doing this on purpose.

"You guys seem very close!" Takeshi commented, smiling with his eyes closed. It was by no means a fake smile, but there was something off about it. It seemed kind of… sharp.

Byakuran had both his arms on my shoulder and his chin on my head. I hated being so short.

"Of course we're close!" Byakuran smirked, "After all, Tsunayoshi-kun and I are-"

I twisted out of his grasp and tried to push him away from me. Far, far away, where he can no longer speak such embarrassing things about our non-existent romance. Where in the world did he get that idea from, anyway?

"Baka-Tsuna, a Mafia boss shouldn't give out his personal information so easily." Something - or should I say someone - landed on my head. Well, I was wondering when he'd show up.

"Good thing I have no aspirations to be a Mafia boss, huh?" I answered Reborn, smiling slightly, "I wouldn't even know what to do with the power. Buy every child a hamster, maybe?" I briefly entertained the idea but then scrapped it when I realised that it means many hamsters would be dying.

Reborn turned his attention to Byakuran and I could feel the atmosphere turn cold. "What is the heir to the Gesso Famiglia doing here?"

_What_.

I gaped at Byakuran, and then sighed in resignation. Of course he's in the Mafia. Who isn't nowadays?

Byakuran beamed at Reborn. "Because I wanted to see my beloved Vongola Decimo, of course!" He tried to hug me again but I evaded his grasp by hurling myself to the other side of the street. Of course, as my luck would dictate it, I crashed landed into somebody. Surprisingly, I did not fall down.

"You alright? That was some extreme fall you did there!"

Well, that explains it.

The arms that caught me then held me up at arm's length. Literally. My toes were barely brushing the ground. Grey eyes widened upon catching sight of my face and a large grin spread across his face. Apprehension started creeping up in me.

"Sawada! Join the boxing club!" he yelled, pumping his right fist in the air. Without his support, I was unceremoniously dropped to the ground with a loud 'thump!'.

_I knew it._

"Tenth!" Hayato was suddenly at my side, helping me back up and glaring at Sasagawa Ryohei. I had to quickly defuse the situation before the dynamites were brought in.

Hah. Defuse.

"Hello Sasagawa-senpai," I greeted the boxing enthusiast politely. He must be on one of his many, _many_ daily jogs. I wonder where he gets the energy from. Then, I processed his question. "Me? Boxing club?" I asked him incredulously. Yeah sure, I could hit others but did I look like someone who could withstand a punch to the face? Haha, haha, haha, no. I'd fly out of the boxing ring immediately.

"Yes! I am the captain of the boxing club and my motto is 'Extreme'! I've heard much about you from my younger sister!" He pumped his fist up into the air again. I vaguely wondered if he had ever needed to use an 'indoor voice'.

"Ah, Kyoko-chan, right?" I was sixty-eight percent sure that she was his sister. He nodded and I inwardly cheered. Yes! I didn't make a fool out of myself!

He placed his hands on my shoulders and gave me a large, blinding grin. "I welcome you to the boxing club, Sawada!"

I blinked. _What?_

"I'll wait for you in the boxing dojo later!" He continued jogging away, ignoring that fact that I did not answer him and that it was a Sunday. Were we even allowed to be in school on weekends? I really hoped so, considering the disciplinary committee… No, this wasn't the problem here!

"But I don't want to join the boxing club!" I shouted at Sasagawa-senpai. Of course, he didn't hear me, just smiled and waved at me as he jogged away. Argh, no one listens to me! First, the whole Mafia boss situation. Then, becoming my subordinate when I just wanted friends. And now, this. Coerced into the boxing club. _Fantastic_.

"Tsuna, are you okay?" Takeshi's voice made me aware that I had been staring at the place Sasagawa-senpai was for quite some time. I shook myself out of my daze and gave him a small smile.

"Yeah, I guess."

"Tenth, is that… lawn-head disturbing you? Do you need me to get rid of him?" Hayato was suddenly in my line of sight, hands full of (thankfully) unlit dynamite.

"No thanks, Hayato," I replied, eying his dynamite warily, "I can deal with this myself." At the mention of his first name, red flooded his face and he dropped his dynamites. I could almost swear that there was steam coming out of his ears or something. Ah well, he'll get used to me saying his name soon.

I crouched down to picked up the dynamites and a pair of black shoes entered my line of sight.

"You're going to the gym," Reborn told me. I didn't bother to argue with him. What good would that do? I'd still have to go anyway. I had very, very little control over this life.

(It wasn't even mine to begin with in the first place.)

I was so caught up in my thoughts, I didn't manage to catch the strange and slightly foreboding look Byakuran gave me.

* * *

_Okay, Tsuna, you just have to tell him that you don't want to join the boxing club._ It shouldn't be too hard. I tell myself as I stand in front of the doors to the boxing dojo.

I felt a little bad coming here without Hayato and Takeshi, but I strangely couldn't find them and invite them along with me. Hey, at least Byakuran's gone. That guy really gives me the creeps.

Suddenly, the door slammed open and I barely kept myself from shrieking and losing my balance.

"Sawada! I was waiting for you!" Sasagawa-senpai shouted. He seems to be louder than usual. "Upon hearing your reputation," he continued as he invited me into the dojo, "the elder of Muay Thai came all the way from Thailand!"

"You're jo...king…" I stared at the little not-baby standing on a post. Sure, he might be wearing something else but _seriously_. Surely a goatee and a blue elephant hat won't make that big of a difference.

"This is Master Paopao!" Sasagawa-senpai introduced. I squinted at him, trying to see if he really didn't recognise Reborn.

He didn't.

"I want to see a match between the captain and the new member," Reborn told me. I stared at him, unamused.

"I seriously don't get how you could convince him about your identity," I told him, "Is it the hat? It's a nice touch, I have to admit. I quite like it." I tried not to think about his words. He _must_ be joking, right?

"Hm, you're right! A spar between Sawada and I would be an extremely great way to measure our skills!" Oh my god Sasagawa-senpai, I cannot believe you.

"Just wait a second, Sasagawa-senpai-"

"Good luck Tsuna-kun!" Wait, don't tell me…

"Do your best, Tsuna!"

"Don't lose, tenth!"

So they were here this whole time?!

I turned back to Reborn. "Please tell me that you guys are joking."

* * *

They weren't joking.

_Dodge_.

Holy shit, that guy's fast. What did he call his attack again? Extreme Right? Does that mean he can only punch with his right hand?

… Yeah, that was a stupid question.

"Extreme Straight!"

Welp, I was wrong.

_Dodge all of them. Blocks will only cause damage to your own body._

"Join the boxing club, Sawada!"

"I must" _dodge_ "apologise, Sasa-" _dodge_ "-gawa-senpai," _dodge dodge dodge holy shit he is terrifying _"but I don't" _dodge dodge hey is he even listening to me_ "want to join the boxing club!" _Punch him!_

My fist shot out and grazed the side of his cheek. Shit, I'm wide open now.

A quick uppercut to the chin from Sasagawa-senpai and I flew out of the ring, slamming into a wall. I hissed in pain, thinking about whether or not I should just pretend to faint in order to avoid more hurt. Like damn, I never wanted to do this in the first place, anyway!

(But it's an insult, isn't it? To treat someone's beloved sport so callously…)

I slowly stood up from the rubble (rubble?! Just how strong _is_ this guy?) and rubbed my chin, wincing in pain. Hayato was at my side in an instant, babbling something about nerve and injustice and _"how dare he injure tenth like that"_. I couldn't quite understand his words due to the Italian accent combined with the sheer speed of his words. His words then took on a familiar tone and I hurriedly tried to placate him before the dynamite got pulled out.

"Tsuna, are you okay?" Takeshi was on the other side, near-manhandling while checking me for injuries. Frankly, the both of them were rather smothering and I had absolutely no idea how to tell them to back off without sounding rude.

"I like you, Sawada!" Sasagawa-senpai was in front of me now. The rest of the people in the dojo were staring at the scene we were making. This was like the volleyball tournament again and I had to stop myself from shrinking into the shadows. This was so weird after thirteen years of minimal attention from even my own mother.

(But… it's kind of pleasant, I guess.)

"I can see the potential in you! I'll definitely welcome you into the boxing club!" he grinned brightly. My mouth dropped open in slight disbelief.

_Didn't I already tell him that I don't want to join the boxing club?_

"I like you too Sasagawa Ryohei." Ah, that was Reborn. Speaking of which…

"Hey guys, where do you think Reborn got his new hat from?" I asked Hayato and Takeshi. They looked at me strangely.

"What new hat, Tsuna? Do you mean his fedora?"

"No, that one!" I pointed at Reborn, who was currently speaking to Sasagawa-senpai and attempting to con- I mean, conv_ince_ him to join the Mafia. You can try, dear Reborn, but that guy's denser than iridium. Good luck with that.

"But tenth, that's Master Paopao!" Hayato seemed to believe his words. Takeshi too. I stared at the both of them blankly.

"You know what? Just forget it."

* * *

I wonder if it's one of those Anime Things. Reborn seems to defy all sense of reality, after all.

After much persuasion, I finally got Hayato and Takeshi to let me walk home by myself. It's not that I hate them or anything, I just didn't really have the energy to properly socialise with anyone at the moment. I guess I should be thankful Reborn isn't here as well. Instead, he's off doing god knows what.

I really did want to ask him how he did his reality defying, though.

As I crossed the street, something caught my eye. I tilted my head to the side and gave a thoughtful look.

_Hey, I'm technically a main character, right? I kind of wonder what I can get away with…_

A smile graced my lips and I opened the door.

"Hello! Welcome to Miura Costumes! How may I help you?"

* * *

Miura costumes is pretty much one of the best costume shops I've ever gone to in my two lives. When I specified to the helpful salesperson that I would like a headband that would not come off, they gave me a headband that _would. Not. Come. Off._

I probably should have specified that I didn't want to put it on right then and was, in fact, saving it for next weekend. Well, at least whatever strange glue they used would last for only a day. I guess I could start my experiment early…

Who was a kidding, I was going to be a laughing stock by the end of tomorrow. And just where did that terrifying salesperson get the glue, anyway? Was it what Reborn used?

"Just what is on your head?" Reborn's squeaky voice came from beside me. I shrieked in surprise and pretty much fell off my chair. Luckily, I managed to prevent my head from slamming against the floor. Didn't mean I wasn't hurt, though.

"Ouch, Reborn! That _hurt_! Please don't sneak up on my like that!" I whined, hands automatically flying to my head to clamp down on the headband.

"A Mafia boss should not be caught off guard," Reborn told me absentmindedly, more focused on what was on my head. He reached out, grasped the end of fluffy brown fabric and _pulled_.

"Ow ow ow ow _ow_!" I shrieked as strands of my hair was pulled along with the fabric and my centre of balance was disrupted yet again. "Don't pull them, they're _sensitive_," I hissed and yanked the fabric out of Reborn's little hands, making a show of rubbing at them.

The little not-baby stared at me dully. "Since when did you have rabbit ears?" he asked. I tried not to give anything away as I tilted my head to the side in confusion.

"What rabbit ears?" I feigned ignorance although I was _fully aware_ that I had a pair of lop bunny ears hanging down the side of my head. And yes, that was what I bought from the costume shop. A bunny ear headband. You could tell that it was bought on a whim because I really, _really_ regret my decision right now.

Reborn continued to stare at me and I tried my utmost best to continue being confused. A battle of wills in which I would most probably lose.

Then, the most unimaginable thing happened. Reborn _looked away_. I fought to keep from sighing in relief and just stared at his retreating figure for about a second more before moving back to the bed.

I can't believe that he just let the subject go, just like that. Was it considered as one of those "Anime Things" or did I have to prepare myself for later horror?

… I'll think about this tomorrow.

* * *

"Good morning, Tsu-" Takeshi's eyes widened, "na…"

"Tenth… you…" My two friends were staring at me. This is mortifying but from what I've learnt, if I pretend everything's fine, people would play along too. It's also kind of amusing to watch their reactions too, once I've gotten past the, y'know, total utter embarrassment that came with wearing rabbit ears.

If you wanted to know, my mother didn't notice anything different about me this morning. She's so inobservant I can't help but worry about her every day. How would I go to university this way?

"Yes, what is it?" I asked confused expression fixed firmly on my face. A beat passed and then the two looked away from me, blushing furiously. Now I was really confused. The one that should be blushing is me! Why are they blushing instead?

Adolescent boys are strange creatures.

"Hurry up, Baka-Tsuna, or you're going to be late," Reborn told me. I smiled at him gratefully. He was such a caring tutor.

No, I'm not suffering from some strange form of stockholm syndrome.

"C'mon guys! I'll race you to the gates!"

I lost, of course.

* * *

Hayato yawned. Takeshi yawned. I carried on sipping my juice pack.

"Did you guys not sleep well last night?" I asked, trying to make conversation, "You're yawning."

"Ah no, I'm yawning because I'm bored, haha!" Takeshi told me. "Don't you think it's a little boring now, Tsuna?"

"Oi, how dare you suggest that the tenth's company is boring?" Hayato immediately came to my defence. I quickly cut in before things got explosive.

"Um, personally I don't think it's boring. I'm quite happy just being in your company." I gave a cheerful, honest smile. Hayato and Takeshi stared at me as their faces slowly reddened. Right, I said something wrong again.

Something sharp and prickly jabbed me in the side and I almost fell over in shock.

"Ciaossu."

Ah, it's Reborn. Of course it's Reborn. Why wouldn't it be Reborn? I looked down at him and paused.

"Just what are you wearing?" He was a brown spiky ball. What was he supposed to be, anyway?

"I could ask you the same thing," he shot back. I blinked. Ah, almost fell for his trap over there.

"Ah, am I wearing anything weird?" I frowned and made a show of checking my clothes. I could almost feel the irritation coming out of Reborn. He really doesn't like not being in the know, huh?

"Owowowow!" He punished me by rapidly poking me with his costume. "What are you supposed to be, anyway?"

"A sea urchin." I cannot believe him. Takeshi laughed, thinking that Reborn was joking. Man, I wish.

"This is a camouflage for spying on people commuting on long distance trains," he informed me. I stayed quiet and patiently waited for him to explain just why a _giant brown sea urchin_ is the ideal disguise for trains.

"Everyone's too scared of the spikes to come close so it's really easy to relax." I blinked. Ah, that sounds logical. Not.

"That has nothing to do with spying!" I protested.

"One of my lovers made it for me for a project in Home Economics when she was in elementary school," he carried on, ignoring me as per usual.

"Lovers?! You have lovers with _that_ body?" Those people would get arrested for pedophlia!

Why do I suddenly feel so faint?

"People who touch these spikes will go to heaven in exactly thirty seconds."

_I swear to go-_

Everything went black.

* * *

_Slam!_ The ground vibrated, rousing me from the darkness of my sleep. Also, the ground was strangely soft. I opened my eyes to see that I was on a couch, and in a very pretty room. Reborn was sitting in the couch opposite me, calmly drinking a cup of coffee.

"Two," a cold voice said, "Is it over now?" The voice immediately set off alarm bells in my head and my intuition started screaming at me to _leave now_.

I immediately shot up to a sitting position and scanned the room for Hayato and Takeshi. They were slumped against the couch I was on, unconscious. A tall teen with jet black hair and icy cold grey eyes stood nearby, his hands in his pockets, and staring at me.

_H-Hibari-senpai!_

"Hiee!" I tried to suppress my violent reaction, taking a deep breath. I put in effort to lessen the trembling of my body as I locked eyes with the most dangerous person in the school. "What happened here?" I asked, inwardly giving a sigh of relief when my voice did not tremble. I shot off the couch and put myself in between Hibari-senpai (threat, higher level, escape _immediately_) and my friends.

I did not budge when Hibari-senpai walked closer to me, only glaring up at him defiantly. Like hell I'd let him hurt my friends.

"Headwear is not allowed in school premises," he said menacingly. I paused for a moment, trying to process his words. To be honest, I was expecting some generic villain line, like 'Out of my way peasant' or something, but not this.

_This guy… is a real stickler for rules, isn't he? Well, he _is_ the head of the disciplinary committee…_

I opened my mouth in order to explain to him that even if I wanted to take the damn thing off, I _couldn't_, but he got impatient. His hand shot out and immediately began tugging on the ears, effectively pulling my hair along with it.

"Owowowowow! Hiiiieeee! Hibari-senpai, it hurts! Stop pulling them!" Miura Costumes' glue is on another level of strength. But seriously, I'd rather the damn thing come off than go through this hellish pain.

"It's… attached to you," Hibari-senpai said in a deadpan. His hands were still holding onto the ears and I wasted no time in snatching them back and rubbing my head to soothe the pain.

"Of course it's attached to me! It wouldn't hurt that much otherwise!" I shot back without thinking. Ouch… Am I tearing up? I think I'm tearing up. Shit, now Reborn's gonna hurt me and go 'Mafia Bosses don't cry' in his irritating squeaky voice of his. Well Reborn, you know what? _I don't care._ I'm not going to be a bloody-

Why is Hibari-senpai petting me.

I stared up at the fearsome Hibari-senpai with wide watery eyes, equal parts shocked and terrified. I froze under his hand, not moving a muscle. What is he doing and, more importantly, _why_?!

_This is the most terrifying moment of my life._

"Hi-Hibari-senpAIII!" I shrieked when he suddenly shoved me away from him. I stumbled backwards but quickly righted my centre of gravity to prevent falling on and hurting Takeshi and Hayato. I quickly put a little space between him, watching him warily, but still planting myself firmly in front of my friends.

Hibari-senpai stared at me for a while longer, and something in his gaze make me think of a predator stalking his prey. I forced back a shudder and continued to put up a brave front. I knew I was hopelessly outclassed, and the best bet was to escape but…

(I can't just leave them here.)

_(Just go. Save yourself. Why should you care about these pathetic adolescents, anyway?)_

(They're my friends. I won't leave them.)

_(Hah, you foolish child. Are you trying to be a martyr? One day you'll die because you're so naive. So weak.)_

(I'm already dead anyway, so why does it matter if I die again to save my precious people?)

Hibari-senpai's eyes moved to Hayato and I automatically shifted so that I was blocking his view more. So that I can easier intercept anything he might try. Immediately, Hibari-senpai's eyes flickered back to me. He did not miss the miniscule movement. A tense silence filled the air as we stared at each other, waiting for… something.

A coffee bean flew in between us and impacted the war with a barely audible tap.

_Well I guess _that's_ something._

Hibari-senpai turned to Reborn and I immediately found what I was unconsciously searching for.

An opening!

I quickly grabbed the back of Hayato and Takeshi's clothes and hauled ass out of the place.

Thank god that was over.

* * *

We sat on the roof as I patched Hayato and Takeshi up. It took a while for me to talk them into letting me see their wounds. Irritating boys and their stupid big-ass egos.

"Ciaossu."

"You intentionally made us meet Hibari-senpai, didn't you?" I asked my tutor without missing a beat, still disinfecting wounds. ("Hold still, Hayato. Don't squirm." "Sorry tenth!")

"Yes I did," he admitted cooly, "You're lucky to leave with only bruises and scratches." I felt my blood boil with indignation. Couldn't he at least try to sound more apologetic? I mean, _hello_, you pit us up against the scariest person in Namimori!

"Okay. You're my home tutor, so I guess you have every right to put me in danger. But why must you drag my friends along with me? If you want to hurt someone, just hurt me! I can't stand it when my friends get hurt!" I shot Reborn a scathing glare, uncaring about the consequences that may follow after.

"They're your Family. They'll be with you regardless, and they will protect you at the cost of their life."

"But I don't want them to get hurt!"

"Then you'll have to be stronger."

I paused in the middle of preparing a retort. Reborn was right, I needed to get stronger. I knew how to fight, but only as a sport. I was utterly _foolish_ to think that I could protect myself with what little training I did. I won't even be able to hold my own ground. Not against Hibari-senpai, and definitely not against anyone from the Mafia.

(I need to get stronger).

(For them.)

"Tsuna," Takeshi said suddenly and I jolted out of my thoughts.

"Ah sorry. I'll help you with your wounds in a moment."

"Tsuna. We'll get stronger too. Together." Takeshi sounded so serious, similar to the time he all but pledged eternal loyalty to me.

"Yeah, tenth. We'll protect you, and we won't get hurt again, so you don't have to worry so much," Hayato continued, conviction in his eyes. My own eyes widened at their words and they started to burn slightly.

"I… I…"

(I don't deserve them.)

I discreetly wiped at my eyes.

"Thank you…"

* * *

"Your ears are gone." Hibari-senpai was waiting at the gate the next morning. I tried not to twitch as his greeting.

"They're still here." I pointed to my human ears, feigning ignorance. I knew what he was talking about; the horrid headband from yesterday that I finally managed to detach and dispost. The whole incident would remain buried deep within my subconscious, right there with ball games and flying incidents.

They _never_ happened.

Never mind that there was absolutely no change in the way my classmates treated me yesterday, as if they didn't even realise I had an extra set of ears (or that I even existed for that matter). The mental scar of simply wearing those things and getting them yanked about was horrible enough.

Hibari-senpai patting my head, you say? Hah, you're delusional. Totally and utterly delusional.

_It never happened, you hear me?_

Hibari-senpai was staring at me, scrutinising me. I felt like a bug under his gaze. Hayato and Takeshi were on either side of me, tense and ready to move into action at any moment.

"You still look like a helpless bunny without them," Hibari-senpai said bluntly. I flinched minisculey at the utter bluntness of his words. Then, he smirked and turned around, walking away. "See you, little herbivore."

… I had a feeling that my school life was going to get a _lot_ more troublesome.

* * *

**Omake **(because why not)

"Oya, fancy meeting you here, Tsunayoshi-kun!" Byakuran greeted me from outside my house. At the gates. Wow, what a coincidence.

I could feel the horror building up in me as his eyes settled on the bunny ears. His purple eyes literally sparkled and I _knew_ he was going to saw something horrible and inappropriate about them.

"Is this a Loveless alternate universe?" he asked, a smile playing on his lips. _Eh?_ I stared at him blankly.

Byakuran walked up to me and whispered in my ear, telling me about Loveless. My face slowly became redder and redder until I couldn't take it anymore.

I tore off the headband (it came out, thank _god_) and threw it at his face with incredible force. Then, I rushed into the house and locked the door.

I freaking _hate_ Byakuran Gesso

(That's a lie.)

* * *

**Author's note** Yay it is complete. Not betaed

(FYI in Loveless, apparently the only way to remove them animal ears is to lose your virginity. So. Yeah. I don't watch Loveless though, my friend does so idk)

I have half a mind to write an omake in other people's point of view on Tsuna's rabbit ear day. Especially Hibari Kyoya lol. Gee, I wonder what's going on through his mind when he sees little bunny Tsuna. btw the bunny idea literally came to me in the middle of the bloody night; I have no idea how it happened.

I had problems with Sasagawa Ryohei's part ugh, so it's kinda forced. Still, I hope you guys like it. If you don't, I guess you could tell me which part you don't like and why? (even if it's a simple 'idk i just don't feel it', it's fine) Well, unless you hate the entire story. Then I'm sorry (?), but why are you still reading this.

Ah, haven't gotten any flames yet. The people who read this story are sweethearts

**Eovin** Byakuran's my favourite antagonist too! Thank you for your high praises, I was literally blushing after reading your review. I hope this chapter is up to your standards as well! (insert happy face here)

**FreeWeirdGal** Yes. Yes he is.

**Hikari Kaiya** Thank you~ I do hope you enjoy this chapter as well.

**Akayuki Sawada** He should run. And Tsuna _always_ has the worst luck. It come hand in hand with being a protagonist.

**sheriko** I'm interested in your thought progress. What kind of deal? I hope it's not a sell your soul kind.

**sin kx** Thank you! Ah, I've never actually tried strawberry cheesecake before, but normal cheesecakes _do_ taste good.

**Kazuki Akira** Yes, this story is staying canon in terms or pairing. Your review was very insightful and really did help me come to a decision about what paths this story should take, so thank you for your kind feedback!

**Marmora F. An Nora** (interesting name you have there) Thank you~

Quotes and stuff

"If the multiverse theory is true, then there's a universe where it isn't." - _smokywarfare on tumblr_

Iridium is the densest element on earth, 22.65g/cm3

IMO Tsuna _knows_ how to socialise - in theory. Only in theory. He's rusty after thirteen long years of nothing, and tends to be really blunt (like Kuroko from Kuroko no Basuke). Yeah.


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